On Track: Recent Episodes
Tara Jacobsen
Follow along on this podcast with Tara Jacobsen and Amanda Cole on their journey working with small businesses from all over Australia and New Zealand. This podcast explores the journey, learning and lessons of rural regional and remote businesses owners that our hosts meet on the Groei Small Business Forum and through the WIRE Program. They will share a snippet of what they have learnt on this journey of building a business in rural regional and remote parts of our countries .. make sure you stay "On Track" and learn how to navigate your business success.
Christine Brennan is a Designer, Innovator, Thought ProvocateurShe is a passionate Innovator working with businesses across Australia exploring market disruptions and designing new business models. Christine strives to assimilate the “Human” in the development of new businesses, products and services. She is fascinated by the complexities of business, ever intrigued by the experiences we design and the innovations that can be driven from questioning these.Christine relishes opportunities to disrupt traditional industry assumptions providing improved consumer experiences. With over 10 years’ experience in strategic thinking, design and innovation, Christine successfully challenges existing business models for a wide range of innovative business solutions. Christine also holds 15 years project management experience in both operational and corporate contexts enabling business model innovations to be translated into actionable deliverables. Christine’s experience in non-traditional roles motivates her to support other women to achieve their personal and professional business goals.https://www.linkedin.com/in/christine-brennan-5717b922/
Adele is a Peak Performance Coach & Profiler that specialises in Mind/Body Performance.She has had the privilege of coaching Peak Performance to some amazing athletes, sports teams in different codes, to millionaires, career professionals, business owners & international CEOs over the past 10 years. She firmly lives & breathes the philosophy of an integrated mind/body approach for higher performance and intimately knows the significant role that the parasympathetic nervous system plays in the peak performance of those in any leadership position.She is an international workshop facilitator, has an online program called The Fit Lab, has coached 1000’s of clients, is a Master Practitioner in Neuro-Linguistic Programming, Hypnotherapy, Edisc Trainer, Psychosomatic Profiler & Qigong instructor. Her current Workplace Wellbeing Project is called cheetox.com which is a peak performance program for workplace professionals.Her mission is to see people within the workplace perform (sustainably) and to succeed beyond every limit they ever place on themselves!https://www.linkedin.com/in/adelespurgin/
Following years of working in global businesses, Debbie is passionate about delivering revenue acquisition and marketing strategies to businesses through structured, repeatable and measurable processes.A regular international speaker, facilitator and advisor to CEOs and business leaders, she developed the unique Threeby3 methodology—the 9 Boxes™— to support strategic business growth. Replacing tactical responses with business-aligned strategy, the 9 Boxes™ methodology has been used by more than 2000 businesses worldwide.Debbie’s experience with mid-tier businesses has built on her extensive experience in corporate business in the United Kingdom with major global media group News Corporation working on The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun and The News of the World and global recruitment business Robert Half International.Today she speaks regularly at CEO forums helping senior executives to benchmark their current marketing performance and helps them understand their role in using marketing strategically, directing it from the board room.
As a multi-award winning business woman Yvette has started six businesses, sold two, acquired one, and currently runs three The Creative Collective – a full service creative agency specialising in digital marketing; The Training Collective, a digital skills training organisation, and awardshub.com,an online portal which helps people find business awards to enter.From 2019 to 2021 she was one of 10 official Community Trainers for Facebook Australia & NZ. She has sat and passed several globally recognised certifications for Facebook products.Yvette has won numerous awards including the Telstra Business Woman of the year Business Owner category in 2010, the IT Woman of the Year at the iAwards in 2013, and was awarded with a Pearcey Award in 2018 for people who have made a significant contribution to the IT industry.Listen to Yvette’s insights on growing your own business and all the challenges that go with that. If you want to hear more from Yvette join us the Female Founders Summit on the 2nd of September either in person on the Sunshine Coast or via a digital ticket. Virtual Tickets are also available here - https://bit.ly/SCFFSummitYou can can connect with Yvette on the following socialshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/yvetteadams/https://www.thecreativecollective.com.au/training-courses-digital-strategywww.thetrainingcollective.com.au www.awardshub.com.
Helen Shadforth has become one of Australia’s most influential people in the artisan food world, having co-founded internet success story, Cheese Therapy, in 2015. Cheese Therapy is now Australia’s largest independent artisan cheese retailer. Central to Helen’s drive is her passion for supporting small business, which has seen Cheese Therapy expand into new food categories and now works directly with hundreds of small producers across Australia. In 2021, Cheese Therapy is undertaking a capital raising and making moves to accelerate its growth beyond the eCommerce gift of 2020.A graphic designer and artist by trade, Helen understands that you don’t need to have all the skills to build a great business, rather, you need to know the right questions to ask and the right people to surround yourself with.To help stop her mind from racing, you’ll find her at yoga or out running.Listen to Helens insights on growing your own business and all the challenges that go with that. If you want to hear more from Helen join us the Female Founders Summit on the 2nd of September either in person on the Sunshine Coast or via a digital ticket.Virtual Tickets are also available her - https://bit.ly/SCFFSummitYou can can connect with Helen on the following socialsFacebook - @cheesetherapyAUInstagram - @cheesetherapyTwitter - @cheesetherapyLinkedIn - Helen Shadforth
In this episode we talk to Victoria Berry who has a 25 year history of helping small business. In her career as an Accountant and Business Advisor, she has helped countless businesses start, grow and sell. The rise of cloud accounting lead to the creation of Bookkeeper Hub – in order to provide Xero Training, Xero Bookkeeping and their Xero “Fix-it” services, to ensure small businesses are able to get up to date, meaningful information from their accounting system.Simply because small business owners have better things to do! Frustrated with the inability to give great advice to start up businesses lead her to write the book “Zest for Success”. This book covers the basics of starting and running a business in an easy to read format with links to valuable resources. This knowledge has also been transferred to one-on-one and we based training based on the book content. Taking Financial Literacy to the next Level, Victoria is in the process of becoming an accredited Profit First Professional – assisting business owners to manage their cashflow the easy way.If you want to hear more about Vic's journey and learn from a female founder that has grown her business then come along to the Groei Female Founders Summit on the 2nd of September. Virtual Tickets are also available her - https://bit.ly/SCFFSummitYou can can connect with Victoria on the following socialshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/victoria-berry/https://www.hbaencompass.com.au/about-us/https://www.zest4success.com.au/https://www.bookkeeperhub.com.au/
On this episode we chat with Zoë Sparks. Zoë has owned her award-winning travel, conference and event management company – Spectacular Events Pty Ltd – for the past twenty-three years. Spectacular Events delivers conferences, events, expos and exhibitions for up to 1000 attendees at any one time and also offers group travel packages and options for schools, clubs and major events. Zoe is the founder of SHINE Business Women which was launched in early 2018 and is making a huge impact in the area of professional and personal development for women in business.Recognised twice as a QLD Telstra ‘Business Woman of the Year’ finalist and also a winner of Sunshine Coast Outstanding Business Woman of the Year, Zoë has a proven track record for success and achievement. Zoë’s experience in small business is not only as a business owner but also as a franchisee, Board and committee member (companies and not-for-profit organisations) and volunteer.Zoë is passionate about ‘women in business’ and reward and recognition which has led to her authoring three small business books sharing the tips and tricks she has learnt over the years, plus two books that feature the stories of women in business – SHINE’ing the Spotlight and SHINE’ing the Spotlight... The Journey Continues. The launch of SHINE’ing the Spotlight ... UNLEASHED the podcast last year was also an instant success.If you want to hear more about Zoe's journey and learn from a female founder that has grown her business then come along to the Groei Female Founders Summit on the 2nd of September. Virtual Tickets are also available her - https://bit.ly/SCFFSummit You can can connect with Zoe on the following socials@SHINEBusinessWomen / @zoesparkstravel / @SpecEvents / @SunSHINEBoxessc
Felicity is a proud Aboriginal woman born on Wiradjuri country and living on Ngaro country with her husband and youngest of 3 boys. She is committed to learning, honouring and preserving the ancient Aboriginal culture and passionate about supporting individual indigenous people, their families and mobs and finding opportunities for them to share their gifts and culture with the wider community.Four years ago, Felicity suffered a life altering brain aneurysm bleed. Since being released from hospital in July 2017, weaving and photography has been an integral part of her rehabilitation and healing journey. In the last few years Felicity has started her business Deadly Weaving. Weaving has been integral in helping her manage life with her disability.On this episode Felicity shares with us how she has built her business in the Whitsundays and supported so many other women to do the same. She shares how she focuses on weaving together her gifts for innovative thinking, connecting people, storytelling, traditional Aboriginal weaving, photography, healing and inspiring others with her strong business management and administration skills to help build strong, sustainable and inclusive rural, remote and regional communities.Deadly Weavers runs traditional Aboriginal weaving workshops and Deadly Yarnin programs in schools where she has taught over 700 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander kids in Traditional Aboriginal weaving through school visitsWe acknowledge the Traditional Owners & Custodians of the land on which we walk, work and live - recognising totems, song lines and their connection to the land, waters and sky above. We also pay our respects to all our Elders past, present and those that are emerging.
In this episode we chat to Vivian Evans the founder of Dark Sky Innovations. A recognised and awarded innovator and educator Vivian has been in the education field for over 30 years working across a variety of adult and secondary sectors in NSW and the Northern Territory. Always learning new skills and exploring technologies and strategies to enhance connection and collaboration.Vivian has been a business operator for 20 years providing consultancy work, innovative project management, professional development of teams across a variety of education sectors. For a number of years Vivian was the NSW networker for BroadBand for Seniors contracted with Adult Learning Australia, more recently she was the Community Development Coordinator for her rural town of Coonabarabran and the Tech Mentor and founding member of THE Rural Woman, an online community empowering women to ‘Bloom where they are’ in rural communities across Australia.Vivian’s innovation is usually focused on helping people and communities to truly connect and collaborate to bring people together to create and grow new opportunities whether it be in person events or online through innovative technology.The title of her business ‘Dark Sky Innovations’ was inspired by the fact that her business, based in the rural town of Coonabarabran, sits right next to the first internationally recognised Dark Sky Park in Australia.Always operating from a ‘Cup more than half full’ perspective and facing the challenges of and shifts due to COVID restrictions Vivian saw an opportunity through a tool she had recently used that she could readily adapt and facilitate to the current and shifting circumstances and aligned perfectly with Dark Sky Innovations vision.. This tool was called Goosechase.Vivian quickly adapted for youth events in the Warrumbungle Shire GooseChasing activities (think teams and individuals playing a gigantic interactive game using their mobile devices and real world challenges) whilst families were in COVID lockdown right at the start of the pandemic closures in Australia. She then grew her team as the Australian National University (ANU) sought out a strategy to deliver a virtual StarFest event and delivered 3 weeks of awesome Goosechasing astronomical themed fun that saw participants from around the world participate and provided a successful and even bigger and longer StarFest experience. Excitingly ANU and the players are keen for more!Vivian and the expanding Dark Sky Innovations team are now reaching out to offer their innovative and highly tailored services to rural and regional communities and events across Australia - to provide exciting, engaging and fun connections for people of all ages into the gems and richness of rural tourism, people, places, events and spaces. Being totally adaptive to the rapidly shifting changes in the current times.Vivian and her partner have been living off the grid for over 30 years, just 20 minutes out of the beautiful community of Coonabarabran NSW. Together they have built their own place, developed an extensive garden and raised two girls amidst 100 acres of native Australian bush.Facebook: www.facebook.com/darkskyinnovationsInstagram: www.instagram.com/darkskyinnovationsWeb: www.darkskyinnovations.com.au
We are kicking of 2021 with a bang with our new season of "On Track". Join Tara on this chat with Jayne Arlett. Jayne is one of Townsville’s most prominent business women and has been actively involved in the local business community for the past 25+ years. Jayne recently released her first book "Big Little Business" to support you to grow your business using big business principles for your small business. The book and this podcast will help you get behind the scenes of your business—from your finances to your operations—and help you identify the exact levers you need to pull to increase your strategy, efficiency, and profitability. If you are a business owner or in a leadership role at work - and you are excited by growth, then this podcast is for you. You can download the book through Jayne's website https://jaynearlett.com.au/book/
On our final episode for 2020, we share with you the full recording of the last Small Business Forum of the year. We look forward to sharing more great stories next year. In this podcast we share how do we get our business on the path to growth? It's seems such a long climb from starting our business, to employing our first staff to a million dollar turnover or more. For some it's a distant horizon. How do small business owners manage to build big businesses? Every year, over 300,000 businesses fail. Business owners who put their heart and soul into their dream drive it into the ground, because they didn’t have the tools or the knowledge to make their dream a reality. Because running a small business requires so much broad skill set today. From marketing to strategy, from financial literacy to negotiation skills...usually it's the non core management and leadership skills that make or break a business and nothing to do with what you make, build or sell. How do you get to be as great at the business side as you do at the delivery of your product or service?check out more at our website www.groei.com.au
This episode, we are back talking to another talented regional business woman, Jean Robbins. Jean is one of those business owners you meet that just seem to have it together. She is a safety specialist after all, so calm and focus is what she brings to her clients. Jean hails from Charters Towers and has been building her safety and process consulting business in recent years.Join me on my chat with Jean as she talks about the need for more peer driven learning opportunities for women and regional business owners in general, she also discusses her idea to pay it forward for a regional women scholarship for our bootstrappers program.If you would like to know more about Bootstrappers check out our website here https://www.groei.com.au/bootstrappers/If you would like to connect with Jean to help you with your business processes and WHS. CHer contact links are herePhone: 0417 268 246Email: kisconnect@outlook.comWebsite Address: https://www.keyindustrysolutions.com/Facebook: www.facebook.com/KISCT
In this episode, we are really fortunate to hear from two regional women that are not only working to grow their own region but to build solutions that will support the sustainably of so many more regional businesses ..and they are doing this with the core driver of collaboration not competition.On Episode 7 we hear from Jacqui Blanch and Maree Rosier of Maja Group. Maja group was born out of a meeting of minds of these two go getter ladies in one of the first wire hubs in 2017. Through the Wire program , they started out on joint venture projects, focussed on re-building the heart of the Lockyer valley region in Regional Queensland, and re-igniting the communities passion for the region through collaborative solutions.It wasn’t long after that that they decided it was more fun working together and merged their businesses together because they knew together they could do more than alone and they could have a bigger voice. These two are going somewhere and have a range of digital and commercial independent community projects on the go. Listen in as you learn about their passion for growing a community and their vision to change first their community but then regional Australia through collaboration.
How do you get over your fear of the unknown, so you can feel more confident and make good decisions? It's been an overwhelming year with shut downs and economic instability. Small business owners have faced more than the usual cash flow concerns and personal stress. How do you get your head right while facing the fear of the unknown? On this episode we share two of our speakers from the most recent Small Business Forum because they were just both so good. This forums theme was all about mindset and we had Dr Sarah Mckay founder of the Neuroscience Academy talking about the importance of agency when we think about mindset and thinking positively. You will also hear from Sheryll Fisher who is the MD of a an Organisation Outback Initiatives, which provides experiential leadership development programs in the outdoors for 4 – 23 days. As usual Amanda and I wrap up what we heard on the forum and what other business owners discussed about what they are learning from the forums.If you want to join the last forum of the year on "Thinking Big" you can register here or connect with us on our website to be notified of our 2021 forum program https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/123304451935www.groei.com.au
In this episode, we hear from another fabulous regional business owner that is working to build a strong business and support the small businesses in her region to do the same. Sam Devers is a bookkeeper and the founder and owner of Small Biz HQ in Gladstone Central Queensland. She has some incredible insights to share on this episode. In this chat Amanda talks to Sam about her journey through business and how she got to starting her own business...of course she never thought starting her own business from scratch and building a successful practice in a regional town was her thing but it was. Here, she talks about being a mum, working from home and all the challenges that come with that.You can connect with Sam and her business through:https://www.smallbizhq.com.au/https://www.facebook.com/smallbizhq.com.au/https://www.linkedin.com/in/samanthatetley/
In this episode, we share one of the speakers from the most recent small business forum. The forum theme was all about the importance of creating systems. Essentially business systems are there for operational effectiveness and capture the collective “know-how” of the business. In this episode we share the recording of one of the panellists, Dave Jenyns author of Systemology . Dave shares with our guests on the forum that a system is not software, a system is your propriety way of getting anything you do, done in a consistent routine and predictable way. Once you have set up that standard then anyone else can do it to the level that you expect so that its predictable and it gives you time back...Systems are about doing the right things every time!We also discuss the theme and speakers of the next forum where we explore the mindset we need to navigate being a business owner ..You can Join the next Small Business Forum on the 30th Octob about Business Owner Mindset.. Get your FREE ticket here https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/122516958521If you want to grab a copy of Dave's book you can track one down here https://www.systemology.com/
Vicki Mayne hails from Chinchilla and her farm "Cumalong". Not only is it is the home to Hoofprints Of Change, the business Vicki started as additional income to support her farm through drought, it is also the home of her breeding stock of Chinchira Wagyu. Vicki is a certified Equine Assisted Learning Facilitator through the Academy of Equine Assisted Learning, a leading organisation in EAL offering the only certified EAL BuildingBlocks™ program in the World. Vicki has a dual diploma of Agribusiness Management and Agriculture. For 10 years Vicki and her husband Shane managed cattle stations in the Northern Territory and now produce Chinchira Wagyu - a Red (Akaushi) Wagyu breeding operation as well as farm tours on their farm in Chinchila. Through Hoofprints of Change, Vicki works with individuals, families and teams helping to improve self-leadership and vital soft skills through non-riding interactive programs with horses. In this story Vicki offers a unique blend of Entrepreneurship, Authenticity and Resilience. Join us on Episode 3 and share in this gorgeous story of Vicki's journey into business . entrepreneurship and innovation much of which she learnt through the groundbreaking WiRE program.Connect with Vicki on the links below:https://www.facebook.com/hoofprintsofchange/https://www.instagram.com/hoofprintsofchange/https://www.linkedin.com/in/vicki-mayne-742a39a3/
On this fortnights forum we talk about Time!.. Time Hustle, Time Management, Time Wrangle and what is the secret ingredient to how to use our time more effectively, With never enough hours in the day our time is precious. In business, we never seem to have enough time to get everything done, how do we fit more into our day? How do you get focussed and effective? On the small business forum the expert panelists answer your questions and engage in facilitated small group discussions with other small businesses from around the country. Get more done and grow your business with insights from our panellists and listen in as the Groei founders wrap up of the Small Business Forum with key tips and messages
On this fortnights forum we talk about Productivity Tools and Software Hacks. With never enough hours in the day our time is precious. Digitisation promises to transform your business with software subscriptions, apps and other tech enabling our marketing, sales and operations. Where do you start? On the small business forum the expert panelists answer your questions and engage in facilitated small group discussions with other small businesses from around the country. Get more done and grow your business with insights from our panellists and listen in as the Groei founders wrap up of the Small Business Forum with key tips and messages ... this one will surprise you its not just about Productivity Tools and Software hacks!